Mt. Isolation via Lion Head, Mt. Washington, Davis Path, & Glen Boulder (White Mountain National Forest)
Hike Type: Tilted Lollipop Loop
Distance: 17.24 miles
Elevation: 6,217 feet
Time: 13 hours, 48 minutes (10 hours, 33 minutes)
Hiking Challenges: New Hampshire 4000 Footers, Operation Alaska Benchmark Challenge, NH Rocks that Rock
The Hike
Time for my annual "NOBODY TALK TO ME I'M GOING TO THE MOUNTAINS" vacation, but this time, featuring some friends! I some had convinced Sarah to hike Mt. Isolation with me. First we talked about doing the tradition route up Rocky Branch and Isolation Trail, but decided against it because of her famous ankle issues. Then we pivoted to out-and-back via Glen Boulder, but then we decided we might as well do some form a loop, so we decided we'd go up Boott Spur and down Glen Boulder. Then we had a heat wave and while it was supposed to be significantly cooler out, it was still going to be humid. I am famously the sweatiest human on earth, so I got nervous about water. I proposed the idea of going all the way up to Washington so we could just a couple of liters of water and then use their spigot to fully load up for the long trip down to Isolation and the longer (feeling) trip back to the car. Like any insane person, Sarah immediately agreed! To beat the heat we also opted to get up a f*** o'clock and possibly catch a sunrise - with the sun rising at 5:00am, we decided it made sense to start hiking at 3:00am, which led to Sarah getting a room in North Conway for two nights - perfect!
After the chaotic planning, we officially met for dinner Tuesday night at the North Conway Applebees and were promptly in bed by 8:00am. We locked in our plan of dropping a car at Glen Boulder, driving the other car to Pinkham, hiking up Tuckerman Ravine Trail to Lion Head for sunrise, then following Lion Head and Tux again to the summit. From there, we'd descend via Crawford and Davis Paths all the way to Isolation. Afterwards, we'd head back up Glen Boulder and descend all the way to the car. Neither of us slept well, but we were both stoked for our upcoming adventure!
Our 2:00am alarms went off and we were soon up and getting ready (with a dash of delirium for good measure). We made it out the door at 2:15am and it was horribly hot and humid outside (my car read 82 degrees), BUT the skies were clear, and that's what I really cared about. Driving seperately, I was the line leader, and our drive was mostly uneventful. I got a text from Sarah while we went through North Conway saying "who is this asshole going below the speed limit at 2:22 in the morning?!" which made me absolutely cackle, and later on we discovered a HUGE blowdown (do we call it that if it's on a major road?!) entirely blocking NH-16. Thankfully, we both reacted quickly enough so neither of us were in danger, but it was jarring! There was just enough of the gravel shoulder exposed that we could carefully skirt around it. Starting things off exciting!
We made it to the Glen Ellis Falls parking area, which was recently reopened. We only had a 10 dollar bill, so we decided we'd be humanitarians by paying the $5 recreation fee and "donating" the other $5. We left Sarah's car there and I drove us to Pinkham Notch Visitor Center, where we got suited up and ready to go! There were plenty of cars and plenty of parking - we tried to be quiet as we were the only fools up and about.
Higher Summits Forecast by the Mt. Washington Observatory (7:08pm Tuesday)
[...]. While the worst of this week's heat and humidity is over, a heat advisory will remain in effect until 8 pm EDT Tuesday. Tomorrow will sill remain warm, through less so, particularly at lower elevations and neighboring trailheads. While tomorrow's highs will rebound just to the upper 50s, lower elevations will still be in the mid 80s, so it will still be important to hydrate, stay as cool as possible, kepe an eye out for signs of heat exhaustion, and be ready for the warmer temperatures you have to return to following your time at the higher summits.
Wednesday: Mostly in the clear under partly sunny skies.
High: Upper 50s. Wind: NW at 25-40 mph early, 35-50 mph w/ gusts up to 60 mph midday, and 25-40 mph later.
[3:07am - Start of Hike]
We walked through the center of the Pinkham complex to the truly massive Tuckerman Ravine Trail sign. One thing I did think about was NOT hiking the Tuckerman Ravine Trail the whole way because of possibly encountering snow. One did I did NOT think about was how the Lion Head trail would be affected by lingering snow. The avalanche information board read "AVALANCHE DANGER. A GENERAL ADVISORY. LONG SLIDING FALL. CREVASSES. DANGER FALLNIG ICE. UNDERMINED SNOW. WINTER ROUTE." I hadn't thought about the Lion Head winter route at all, and I would mentally bounce back and forth of which was was the right way to go for most of this initial hike.
[3:11am - Tuckerman Ravine Trail]
[3:13am - Tuckerman Ravine Trail/Old Jackson Road]
The Tuckerman Ravine Trail started off (and remained) wide, open, and super easy to follow for our entire journey. We passed a camper in their tent with a large fallen limb no more than 4 feet from their tent - we think the limb fell overnight as thunder and rain rolled through the area (the same thunder and rain that likely knocked the limb down on NH-16) - thank goodness they were okay!
This first stretch of trail had a few landmarks - notably the junction with Old Jackson Road and the Blanchard Ski Trail (which has sparked a rabit-hole of reading about the ski trails in the area, but that's something to dig into another day). We neared the Cutler River and could see some cascading water through the trees with our headlamps and later crossed the river, and to our dismay, entered a horrible cloud of thick, moist, warm air that we lived in for for about the next hour. The only saving grace was the viewpoint of Crystal Cascade, which was super cool to see in the dark! Only bummer here was that Sarah was attacked by a MASSIVE moth. I also learned about Sarah's phobia of moths in this moment!
[3:24am - Tuckerman Ravine Trail/Boott Spur Trail]
The Tuckerman Ravine Trail then passed the junction with the Boott Spur Trail - a trail we decided not to take because we wanted lighter packs (we will never know if the lighter packs made any difference since we added ~1000 feet of elevation gain... on well!). It was pretty brutally buggy here for a while. We both applied bug spray and ended up removing the headlamps from our heads and had to hold them out in front of us. On the plus side, we saw tons of slugs and frogs! Sarah decided she'd start counting how many frogs we would see versus humans. We were at 3 frogs and 0 humans so far!
We could slowly begin to see first light through the trees. There were clouds to the north and some overhead, but the horizon proper was still open. Maybe we will get a sunrise?! We hiked on, appreciating that miles do not count in the dark, and also how this trail was consistently climbing with decently okay footing - we were making good time to meet our loose, unstated goal of breaking treeline in time for sunrise.
[3:55am - Tuckerman Ravine Trail/Huntington Ravine Trail]
[4:15am - Tuckerman Ravine Trail/Huntington Ravine Fire Road]
We crossed the Cutler River a couple of times on bridges and noticed we were just able to see the outline of a high ridge (either Lion Head or the headwall of Tuckerman Ravine, probably) and a couple of headlamps HIGH up! We crossed the Huntington Ravine Trail, joked about climbing it, and then made it to the Huntington Ravine Fire Road, which still had its winter-only sign up (at least winter-only according to the White Mountain Guide). We went back and forth on what to do, and ultimately decided to stick with the summer route. Worst case, we turn around!
[4:31am - Tuckerman Ravine Trail/Raymond Path]
[4:36am - Lion Head Trail]
Continuing on, we hiked past the Raymond Path junction and landed at the Lion Head Trail summer route. We did a short break here to chug some water, use the bathroom, and I took a moment to wring out my shirt, which was SOAKED with my sweat. We had more or less left the humidity bubble, but I was still cooking!
Now the fun was about to begin! The Lion Head Trail traveled past a shelter, dipped slightly, and then began to shoot up the steep shoulder, past an "Avalanche Area" sign (we were delighted to see no snow on the trail). The climb was steep, scrambly, but fun! It reminded me slightly of the climb up Wildcat Ridge Trail. The morning colors were starting to show through the trees, and we both gasped at the first viewpoint, which provided obstructed views toward the Wildcat Ridge and Carter Dome.
Lion Head Trail zig-zagged up the shoulder, climbing up a fun ladder and few trickier scrambles before revealing the first views over to Boott Spur, whose cliffs were breathtaking.
The clouds began to illuminate with the sun's first glow of the day and I truly blasted off, trying to reach treeline in time for the sun to break the horizon. I nearly put myself into cardiac arrest, but I was (mostly) successful in my mission! The sun debuted the start of the day over the northern Carter-Moriah Range as Sarah and I exchanged a series of "oh my god"s. Beautiful doesn't even begin to put it into words!
Just a little but further up we officially broke treeline at another "Avalanche Area" sign, where we got to enjoy more views toward the Wildcats and Carters, down towards Jackson and Conway, and up towards the cloudy summit of Mt. Washington. We also loved to see some alpine flowers in bloom! The first of which was "bog labrador tea," which can apparently be used to make tea!
We now set our sights on Lion Head proper, where we planned to stop for our first break of the day. The climb continued to be steep, but grades always feel easier above treeline. The views definitely help! Clouds alternated between nearly encasing us to showing us the most incredible views. To our surprise, we crossed paths with two people who were coming off the summit (maybe the people from before?). 4 frog vs. 2 people so far.
We caught our first glimpse into Tuckerman Ravine, too, which had just a few patches of snow left! For the climb from the Avalanche Area to just below Lion Head, the sun was behind the clouds, but it popped out again just before our break, and WOW. It was such a gift to see this incredible area be illuminated by the early morning light. The summit even became visible for a bit!
[5:30am - Lion Head Trail/Lion Head]
We parked on Lion Head for a nice snack as we stared in awe in all directions. It was a bit chilly now as the wind was blowing and we were soaked in sweat, but we were both still feeling good. There was even a survey "button" on Lion Head! We loved watching the clouds roll over Boott Spur and Nelson Crag as we could hear the waterfall at the Tuckerman Ravine headwall draining into the Cutler River. Even as the sun began to hide behind the clouds again, the occasional ray of light would shine so beautifully and dramatically through the humid air. I'm still in awe!
Once the sun was away, it was time to keep moving! The summit was back in a cloud as we continued our beautiful walk from the Lion Head to the junction with the Alpine Garden Trail, which was easy and beautiful! I even got a point in mine and Sarah's game of fart baseball! There were some purple flowers lining the trail that my Seek app can't seem to identify from my iPads screen, but I will say they were pretty!
[6:00am - Lion Head Trail/Alpine Garden Trail]
We soon crossed the junction with the Alpine Garden Trail. Lion Head Trail stayed flat for a moment as it traveled through some wet scrub before starting to climb again. There were MANY Canadian bunchberry flowers in this area (and throughout much of our hike) as well as azure bluets.
Officially in "rock hell," the game became "follow the cairns while still gawking at the views" - we only lost once! We had a nice view back to Lion Head as we slowly entered the clouds, which alternated from "you may not see more than 10 feet ahead of you" to "I can show you the whole wide word!"
My favorite flowers were the moss campions, which were newly budding, and the parts that had budded were closed up for nighttime still. In fairness, I'm really just a sucker for any pink/purple flower. We also passed three-toothed cinquefoils before scrambling through a short rock doorway and eventually making our way through the clouds to the Lion Head Trail terminus at the Tuckerman Ravine Trail, which we think was missing its sign (there was only a sign for Lion Head Trail, not Tuckerman Ravine Trail).
[6:30am - Tuckerman Ravine Trail]
Back on Tuckerman Ravine Trail! This short, final push was a doozy and almost fully in the clouds, with only occasional glimpses around. It climbed steeply and steadily through rock hell and a few patches of grass. It truly felt even more other-worldly than usual with the clouds! After some huffing and puffing, I saw a sign, and yet again, BLASTED off, nearly putting myself into a coma. It was the Auto Road!
[6:53am - Mt. Washington Auto Road]
Never had we ever been so excited to see pavement high on a mountain - we made it! Visibility was no more than 50 feet, so all we knew was to follow the auto road "up." We soon climbed up and over a large staircase, and found the Sherman Adams building!
[6:58am - Mt. Washington Summit]
Once in the area, we BOLTED for the summit. Turns out, if you climb Mt. Washington for 7:00am, you won't have to wait in line! We got our photos with the summit sign, I got my photos of the two discs in the summit area (one at the sign and one ~10 feet away; I also saw a rumor on Facebook that there's another one somewhere near the cog tracks... another day...), and we giggled about how much fun we were having without anyone else there! We also giggled because Sarah's classes would fog up, but only one side at a time, depending on which side the wind was blowing from. According to the observatory, it was 54 degrees out with wind speeds at 32 mph and gusts up to 38 mph.
Only downside was that we were SOAKED. We knew our two goals were 1) fill up all of our water vessles and 2) sit and snack. While circling the building for the water spigot, we noticed a door was cracked open - hmmm? We opened the door, and the automatic sliding doors just inside opened for us to the mud room. The main doors to the visitor center were still closed, I guess they left it unlocked for hikers needing shelter? Sweet! We parked ourselves inside and for the first time realized how DRENCHED we were. The cloud was, in fact, water, and everything we had was sopping wet. We took a nice LONG break here. My main goal was to dry off my camera, which eventually did happen with some patience.
I snacked on my peanut butter and cheddar cheese tortilla, some BBQ-flavored chick peas, and beef jerkey while Sarah moaned "food is AMAZING." After sitting for a while, we saw the first worker of the day arrive (they came in through a different door and paid us no mind). We took turns refilling our water and realized how chilly it actually was outside now that we had warmed up inside.
We noticed toward the end of our break that the clouds were parting occasionally, so we ran out one last time for some photos, before RUNNING back inside because we were frozen! Once back in, we put our puffies on and a new worker came over and said "How'd you guys get in here?" We told him the door was open and he said "Huh... Are you thru hikers?" When we told him we were not he said "You know, we don't have any hot food until 11:00pm." We assured him that was fine and went our seperate ways - poor guy seemed so genuinely confused why we were there (fair). Then another guy came out hauling some... materials? And finally a woman came out and so politely said "Hi! Who let you guys in?" and we said "Oh, no one, the door was open, but we're on our way out!" She was super kind and very concerned that the door was left open (we were grateful). Sarah apologized to both workers that talked to us, but I didn't feel an apology was necessary as the door was open and we just sat there!
Anyway... time to go! We did a quick bonus lap around the summit and then made our way over to the Crawford Path.
[7:52am - Crawford Path]
The Crawford Path was like a dream in more ways than one! When we left the Sherman Adams Building, the clouds parted just enough to show a small nearby undercast and once on the trail, it was like a wonderful cobblestone street. Clouds continuted to roll in and out, but trending toward more visiblity now. The grass looked greener, we could see the summit structures behind us, and soon we hit the junction with Gulfside Trail!
[8:00am - Crawford Path/Gulfside Trail]
We think we saw god in this stretch - the souther Presidentials were all still in clouds at first, but over the course of maybe just two minutes we watched the peaks reveal themselves along with the vast Bigelow Lawn. We shared another round of "oh my god"s while we just enjoyed the show! We could now see down toward the Cog base station, Lakes of the Clouds Hut, Mt. Monroe, an a few taller peaks now peeking through the clouds, too. It was really spectacular. One more thing of note: we both had to pee badly in the beginning of this stretch, but we were nervous that the clouds would part right as we were at our most vulnerable. We ultimately went for it, strategically placing ourselves in rocky nooks, and hoping for the best (we were literally fine).
Eventually, though, it was time to keep moving. We noticed a SEA of humans hiking up the Crawford Path from Lakes of the Clouds Hut, so we picked up the pace a bit since we'd be leaving on the Davis Path soon.
[8:27am - Crawford Path/Westside Trail]
[8:28am - Davis Path]
We hit the junction with the Westside Trail and then it was time for the Davis Path! I had a dream of hiking the entire Davis Path all the way to US-302, but the combination of Sarah's ankle and a recent trail report had me letting that dream go (FOR NOW!). We watched more and more hikers hiking up Crawford from the hut, so we were happy to disembark. The Davis Path was immediately less-manicured than the Crawford Path, but that is to be expected.
[8:35am - Davis Path/Southside Trail]
[8:45am - Davis Path/Tuckerman Crossover]
I really do love the vast network of trails up here. I'm sure its comparable to the density (if not less dense) than the RMC trails off Appalachia, but I love how you can actually see the trails from a good distance away. One thing I didn't love was the INSANE amount of spiders that were in what felt like every nook and cranny of the path. I know Sarah and I were counting frogs vs. humans, but if we included spiders in that count, spiders would have won by a longshot. We were constantly in awe with how massive the summit cone of Mt. Washington was/is and we just loved hiking into what felt like the abyss toward Boott Spur.
[8:54am - Davis Path/Camel Trail]
[8:59am - Davis Path/Lawn Cutoff]
Eventually, Nelson Crag came into view and later, Lion Head. It was extra fun getting to essentially trace the route we took up the mountain! Sarah and I were pretty silent at this part of the hike, just enjoying the gentle grades and beautiful scenery with rolling clouds.
The trail weaved around and over the different faux summits of Boott Spur, we passed an eastern swallowtail butterfly, which according to AMC's Field Guide to the New England Allpine Summits (Slack & Bell, 3rd Ed., 2013) is "a surprising sight in the alpine zone" (p. 163).
[9:23am - Boott Spur Trail]
[9:26am - Boott Spur Summit]
At the Boott Spur Trail junction, we decided to hit the summit, which was just a couple of minutes off-trail. The view back to Mt. Washington was commanding, as was the wind! I am SO MAD that I lost my anemometer (again) - I'm guessing gusts were in the upper 30 mph zone (based on my experience - the 30s is typically where I've felt the wind "pushing" me). We got a great view down toward Wildcat Mountain from the summit, which was more or less marked by a drill hole. We had a quick return down to the Davis Path, and our next stop would be the Glen Boulder junction!
[9:29am - Davis Path]
We took another emergency pee break (we might have over-hydrated, which is NOT a bad thing - I had a liter of Nuun pre-hike, two liters on the climb to Washington, and a fourth liter on our break up top to theoretically compensate for all my sweat) and continued on. This stretch (and the next) really felt like we were hiking into oblivion in the best possible way. The trail sloped gently downward toward the craggy sub-peak at the Glen Boulder Trail junction, revealing the ridge that the Glen Boulder Trail follows and a playful crow, hopping along the fragile alpine vegetation.
[9:43am - Davis Path/Glen Boulder Trail Junction]
[9:56am - Davis Path]
We did a short sit and snack at the Glen Boulder Trail junction, as we knew we wouldn't want to stop again until we were at Mt. Isolation. The trail followed the shoulder of the grassy paradise for a bit, soon entering the Presidential Range-Dry River Wilderness.
[9:58am - Davis Path/Presidential Range-Dry River Wilderness]
I particulatly loved this wilderness boundary because it wasn't the typical sign that we're used to - it was just a plank that said "WILDERNESS." I was also grateful that the trail condition didn't change at all, which is a pro to hiking on a popular trail, even in a wilderness area.
From here the trail continued over the spider's paradise, eventually descending toward the scrub. We passed two more people here, which surpassed the number of frogs we'd seen so far. The saw-like summit of Boott Spur was behind us as the Montalban Ridge revealed itself ahead. The scrub slowly grew to knee-height, and then eventually above our heads where a sign welcomed us to the wilderness area.
[10:11am - Davis Path/Depart Alpine Zone]
Tragically, it was BUGGY in the scrub. Thankfully, that only lasted for a few minutes as the trees grew taller and taller. The descent was moderate, with nothing crazy (which we were WELL aware of, since we'd have to hike back up this later). The trail was bright, but well-shaded, too. We took another potty break in the col between Glen Boulder Trail and North Isolation, and continued on!
There were a few blowdown patches that provided views ranging from "yeah I guess that counts as a view" to "oh my god we have to go back up there?!" We even saw some moose prints! There were a few patches of slightly eroded trail, but nothing crazy at all.
[10:56am - Davis Path/Isolation Trail (West)]
Time was definitely moving slower here in the tree canopy, and it moved even slower after the junction with the Isolation Trail (west). There was a stretch of blowdowns that weren't impossible to navigate, but were not pleasant either. We were forced to take our time, pretending to enjoy the views through the dead trees, as we weaved in and out of nature's jungle gym. This stretch also provided a RUDE view to Mt. Isolation, which looked dreadfully far
[11:12am - Davis Path/Isolation Trail (East)]
Spirits began to pick up once we hit the junction with the Isolation Trail (east), since this was our last landmark before the final push! If the last trail segment was known for blowdowns, this segment would be known for mud and "crooked trails." The mud wasn't anything too horrible, but it did require some thought and some pole-poking to find good ground to stand on.
The "crooked trails" were two blowdown areas/fir waves (I think all fir waves are blowdown areas but not all blowdown areas are fir waves, like squares and rectangles?) where the trees were simply tilted over. It didn't require going over or under, but just walking at a slant, kind of like a cheap carnival's fun house!
After the second "crooked trail," we had the first final push. The trail became steeper (which was the first steeper stretch of trail since Lion Head and Tuckerman Ravie Trails, so we were not complaining, and then we made it to the Mt. Isolation Spur!
[11:40am - Mt. Isolation Spur]
We were ready to absolutely blast off to this summit, but we ran into a couple of hikers coming down from the summit, one who was excited to talk (and to be clear, we are not unfriendly hikers, we had just been hiking alone in the wilderness for a WHILE now and were not used to other humans!). He got extra excited when he heard that this was going to be peak #46 for me, becuase it was also his 46th peak! He had the two Wildcats left, and he planned to hike them A-to-D so his wife could take the chairlift up to celebrate with him, which he was adorably (and rightfully) excited for. He asked my last two, I told him Cannon and Moriah, and he said "well Cannon is a quick up and back, but Moriah is a solid 9.5/10," which I appreciated.
After our chit chat, Sarah and I actually blasted off along the steep spur path to the truly magnificent view from Mt. Isolation!
[11:48am - Mt. Isolation Summit]
We were NOT allowed to gawk at the view until we hit the true summit marker, so we hiked past the main vista through a few more feet of scrub to the summit disc and cairn, gave it a solid boop, gave each other a high-five, and then finally enjoyed.
The main unobstructed vista spanned from Mt. Pierce all the way to Boott Spur and the Rocky Branch Ridge. Behind the Rocky Branch Ridge were the Carters, with many other mountains in view over the scrub in other directions. This view was truly magnificent. We took a nice sit and snack here, peed again (cheers to hydration), said hello to a few other hikers who summited, and eventually (and reluctantly) started packing up. It was at this point two silly things were realized: 1) I was looking for my chafing salve (which is the nicer way of saying diaper rash ointment) deep in my pack when I realized I was not only carrying my Kahtoolas with me, but also my Hillsounds and 2) Sarah left her keys in my car, meaning that this was officially a loop hike! Thank goodness the car spot was only a mile away - the fact that it was so (relatively) close made this into a very funny faux-pas instead of a borderline crisis - I giggled all the way back!
[12:27pm - Mt. Isolation Spur]
[12:30pm - Davis Path]
Our return trip down the spur was short and sweet and then we began to descend on the Davis Path before ascending, descending, ascending, descending, ascending, etc.... We bravely tackled the mud pits and the tilted trees between the Isolation Spur and the Isolation Trail (east)...
[12:58pm - Davis Path/Isolation Trail (East)]
We then courageously traversed the blowdown section and the horrid views to our climb back to Glen Boulder Trail between Isolation Trail (east) and Isolation trail (west)...
[1:14pm - Davis Path/Isolation Trail (West)]
The rude view was rudest from and summnit plateau of North Isolation (apparently a Trailwright's 72 peak - I don't think the true summit is on the Davis Path).
The descent from North Isolation into the col was gentle, and then it was time to turn the brains off and just climb. We were cheered on by some bluebead lillies and another frog (frogs were losing badly at this point), but the climb hurt! Sarah and I mostly stuck together in this stretch, not saying much. As I write this, it sounds much more dramatic than it actually was - we were literally fine, just tired.
[2:08pm - Davis Path/Alpine Zone]
Spirits picked up once we entered the Alpine Zone again. Grades eased as the rolling clouds created really beautiful patterns on the nearby ridges and summits.
[2:20pm - Davis Path/Depart Wilderness Area]
We exited the Wilderness Area, finished the climb back to the Glen Boulder Trail junction, and did a short sit break (and sunscreen application). Time for the final descent! I knew I'd be going back to my car to retrieve the keys, but Sarah wasn't sure if she wanted to come with me or wait at the Glen Ellis trailhead - her ankle would be the deciding factor - tbd!
[2:22pm - Glen Boulder Trail]
The Glen Boulder Trail was absolutely beautiful up high. We descended on its ridge gently, occasionally through patches of scrub (some of which were tighter than we would prefer). The scrubby patches were buggy, but the rest was wonderful. Eventually, the tightest stretch of scrub led to a fantastic view of Boott Spur and the Gulf of Slides as the trail wiggled toward Slide/Gulf Peak. The trees at the floor of the gulf looked like they had been flattened. Maybe by wind, snow, or a mythical giant?
After the "peak" (more like just the end of the ridge's shoulder), the Glen Boulder Trail descends back into the scrub and what felt more or less like treeline (we did not formally leave the Alpine Zone, yet, because we had another open stretch coming up).
[3:03pm - Glen Boulder Trail/Spring]
We passed a spur to a spring in the trees, which I flirted of following just for funsies. I know somewhere down the line of my life I'll likely attempt hiking all the trails in the White Mountain Guide, so I sometimes pretend to think ahead to help myself out down the road (like hiking a spring spur), but that was not in the cards for today). We crossed paths with two guys who looked to be in their upper-teens or low-20s and Sarah asked them where they were headed. Their response was "eh ya know we're just kinda poking around!" which was absolutely wild. Hope they had a good hike!
The Glen Boulder Trail soon exited treeline again, affording wonderful views again back to Boott Spur, the Gulf of Slides, Boott Spur's main ridge, and the trailless ridge between the one we were on and Boott's. Looking down toward NH-16 we could see the Glen Ellis parking area, Pinkham Notch Visitor Center, and the Wildcat Ski Area parking area. I made another joke about the keys here.
The trail became steeper and rougher here, which slowed us down significantly. We truly inched our way down, eventually approaching the Glen Boulder. The footing was along the lines of "just bad and steep enough where you have to almost sit and scootch every few feet" - this was exacerbated by our viciously tired bodies. Ouch!
[3:41pm - Glen Boulder Trail/Glen Boulder]
We eventually made it to THE Glen Boulder, where we made a series of jokes at Glen's expense (when I typed "Glen" into my phone, it autocorrected to "Helen," which also provided us some joke content. Two guys we had seen hours earlier caught up to us and asked if we tried to push it over - I joked to Sarah that I wouldn't want to try since I'm the strongest man on the mountain and wouldn't want to ruin the boulder for everyone else!
They (foolishly) let us get ahead of them as the trail dipped back into the trees. Descents are where Sarah and I ususally get split up - she needs to go slowly for her ankle but I prefer to go quicker and let gravity do most of the work. She officially made the call at Glen Boulder that she did not want to hike to Pinkham with me, so we agreed that once we hit treeline I would blast off to get the car.
The Glen Boulder Trail dipped back into the trees for a moment before hitting one last area of scrub. While waiting for Sarah, I head the two guys pass her and a lot of laughter. When she caught up with me, she said the one guy asked her if she wanted any of his black flies. She said "no thanks I have plenty of my own!" His repsonse was "are you sure? They're all named Glen!" which might be the funniest delirium joke I have ever heard.
The guys passed us, Sarah and I reviewed our plan, and then we hit the Alpine Zone sign.
[4:05pm - Glen Boulder Trail/Depart Alpine Zone]
At the Alpine Zone sign the trail conditions continued to be steep but footing drastically improved. We said our momentary goodbyes as I began my blast off, which also gave me a huge surge of energy (I LOVE a side quest, and I secretly wanted to beat her to Glen Ellis). It was significantly warmer in the woods. There was a gentle stream crossing that took every ounce of willpower in me to not lay in.
I eventually caught up to the guys from before (who we nicknamed "the Glens"), exchanged some nods, and I continued past them. The Glen Boulder trail intersected with a ski trail, steeply descended for a moment, and then leveled out with rough footing as the trail neared The Direttissima. I passed the two men from the Isolation Spur (who I nicknamed "46"), and they unfortunately wanted to talk some more. Again, I promise I am a friendly person, especially on the trail, but I was on a mission!
[4:32pm - Glen Boulder Trail/The Direttissima]
Soon after passing 46 I arrived at The Direttissima. I was grateful for this side quest, dubbed "Operation Rendez-Vous," as it really was the mental boost that I needed. The Direttissima immediately felt less-traveled and I immedaitely caught a spider web to my face (first of the day, though, so that's okay). The overall vibe to the trail was like a Wilderness Trail, just with a highway within earshot. I could also hear Glen Ellis Falls, though, so that was fun!
The Direttissima skirted the bottom of a cliff and had a few more "ups" than I was ready for. There was one little spur path that led toa little view toward a far shoulder of Wildcat before descending roughly with confusing footing. There were some neat, overhanging rocks, though!
The trail crossed a bridge over a lovely, skinny waterfall and then traversed a flat stretch before coming to an end at a parking pull-off just off of NH-16.
[4:54pm - The Direttissima/End of Trail]
From here, a footpath led from the parking area, over a footbridge, over the confluence of the New River and Cutler River, and to the southern end of the Pinkham Notch Visitor Center parking area. I had a short walk back to the car, and at 4:59pm, I had officially completed this BEAST of a hike! Definitely my hardest-to-date. Not my longest, but definitely with the most elevation gain.
[4:59pm - End of Hike]
I didn't change anything at Pinkham except for my shoes (I NEEDED my flip flops on) and then I zoomed over to Sarah's car, where I learned that I had officially won the race! At the parking area, I finished my 9th liter of water, changed my clothes, and waited just about five minutes for Sarah.
Our final count was 9 frogs and 21 people. We eventually left the parking area with one common goal: clean. Sarah's version of that was finding a river to soak in, mine was taking a shower with soap (in fairness, she did shower after!). We accomplished our tasks, I checked into my hotel at the Green Granite Inn in North Conway, and then we met back up at the Wicked Fresh Craft Burgers in North Conway, where Gen joined us! All three of us went to Dairy Queen for dessert, and then Gen and I said goodbye to Sarah before getting into our room to watch some Law & Order before passing out. Truly what an amazing hike!
Step-by-Step
- Park at Pinkham Notch Visitor Center
- Start hike on Tuckerman Ravine Trail.
- At jct., turn right onto Lion Head Trail (summer route).
- At terminus, turn right onto Tuckerman Ravine Trail.
- Summit Mt. Washington.
- Continue hike descending on Crawford Path.
- At jct., turn left onto Davis Path.
- Follow Davis Path into treeline for some time.
- At jct., turn right onto Mt. Isolation Spur.
- Summit Mt. Isolation.
- Retrace steps to Davis Path.
- At jct., turn left onto Davis Path.
- At jct., turn right onto Glen Boulder Trail.
- At jct., turn left onto The Direttissma.
- Return to car at Pinkham Notch Visitor Center.
Photo Album
